A day after the State government recommended the release of seven convicts in former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination case, Governor Banwarilal Purohit is likely to consult with the Centre before taking a decision in this regard.
Illustration by Varghese Kallada
Chennai:
The State government, which passed the resolution favouring the release of the convicts, handed over the recommendation papers officially to the Raj Bhavan authorities on Monday.
Raj Bhavan sources here said that Purohit is looking into all aspects of the State government’s decision by consulting his legal team.
In addition, the Governor is also likely to discuss the issue with the Central government.
Sources further added that Purohit is likely to send a copy of the State government’s resolution to the Centre seeking its consent.
According to various stakeholders, the Governor has the following options: To accept the recommendation of Tamil Nadu cabinet and order the release of the seven convicts immediately, take time before taking the final decision as there is no time frame for him under the law or ask the State government to make some changes in the recommendation by sending an official communication to the State authorities.
The seven convicts Murugan, Santhan, Perarivalan, Jayakumar, Ravichandran, Robert Payas and Nalini are serving life imprisonment.
The Governor of a State will have the power to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence against any law relating to a matter to which the executive power of the State extends under the Article 161 of the Constitution.
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Even as all eyes are on Tamil Nadu governor Banwarilal Purohit who has the power to take the final decision after the AIADMK government recommended the release of seven convicts in former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination case, there have been mixed reactions from the people of Tamil Nadu about the decision. In a Spot Poll conducted by DT Next on social media platforms and by the reporting team across a cross-section of respondents, there was a clear indication towards where the public sympathy lay.
- 65% of the responds felt the Governor should grant pardon
- 30% felt the decision should be delayed and investigated further
- 5% were for the convicts continuing their life-terms even though that does not appear to be an option at this stage